Happily Ever After?
by jollydramione
Summary: Draco Malfoy was the rich playboy. He dated girls and had one-night stands. But what happened when he was betrothed and the only thing to get away from it was to find someone to spend the rest of his life with in three weeks?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: No, I do not own Harry Potter.**

**Author's Note: Hello! I know my last story is not finished yet but I'm waiting until I get at least 5 reviews to post the next chapter, and because I can't just sit down without writing, here is another story for you that I've written. Enjoy! :)**

* * *

It was the second week of NEWTs and she had crammed for this subject she despised the most. Divination. She didn't despise it because she failed terribly at it. No, no, she _never _failed. She couldn't stand failing. It was because the Professor, Sybill Trelawney, told her she had not the inner eye on her third year, which pissed her off badly, and her predictions were inaccurate. She could've sworn the woman was _mad_.

But as much as she despised the subject, she couldn't just quit. What would the school think? Hermione Granger, quit a class because she thought the Professor was mad? Not many students liked the teacher, either, because they thought the same, but she couldn't just quit any subjects. Not even her most despised subject.

Hermione was three minutes _late _into the exam, thank you to her hard-working self; she slept a little bit late the other night. She was never late in her entire life before, which was why she received many looks from students in the classroom, especially her two best friends, Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley. But she managed to leave the classroom confidently.

The girl stood outside the door of the classroom, waiting for Harry and Ron, which she knew they didn't study at all. What pissed her off, though, they never studied for this subject but they _always _managed to scrape a decent grade. _'Cheating?' _she thought.

"I hate Divination," Ron grumbled as he and Harry walked out of the classroom.

"Why does Divination even exist?" Harry sighed.

Hermione approached them. "How was it?"

"Bad" - "Horrible", they responded at the same time as the trio kept walking.

"Well, it couldn't be _that _bad," she said. What was she saying? It _was _bad. Divination was always bad.

Harry rolled his eyes. "How was it for _you_, then? If I remember correctly, you've always despise Divination," he retorted.

"Yes, but apart from sleeping in and being late, it was fine. I'm just glad NEWTs are finally over."

"Me, too. No more pressures and hard work!" Ron exclaimed happily.

"We still have the last exams in a few months, though," Hermione reminded, which made Ron huffed.

"Hey, you guys!" Ginny Weasley called cheerily as she suddenly appeared in front of the trio, making them stopped. "Congratulations on the last day of NEWTs! The end has finally come," she said dramatically.

"Oh, piss of, Gin." Ron pushed her out of the way and kept walking.

"Well, that's not how you treat your little sister," Ginny said as she stopped him.

"If the little sister is being annoying, _that _is how the big brother treats her."

Harry and Hermione looked at each other. The dark-haired boy sighed and the brunette girl just gave him a small smile. Of course, their friendships wouldn't be complete without Ron and Ginny's bickers, or sometimes it was Ron and Hermione. It would be just empty without them. And of course, when this happened, Hermione would be the one who had to stop them, or if it was the reversed version, Ginny had to stop them.

Hermione approached them and put a hand on Ginny's shoulder. "Oh, cut it off, both of you."

"He started it." Ginny mumbled childishly.

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Now, did you want to tell us something?" She felt like her mother or something from the tone when she asked the younger girl. She shuddered. She didn't want to be a mother yet.

Ginny's face lightened up immediately. "Well, there's this secret party in the Room of Requirement on Friday. It's sort of a goodbye pressure party because NEWTs are over, and it's for seventh years only."

"Wait, if it's for seventh years only, then how do you know about this?" Ron asked, narrowing his eyes. "You're in sixth year."

"I know everything, brother."

Ron scrunched up his nose at his little sister.

"Well, that's nice. A party should celebrate our end," Harry said.

Hermione hated parties. She had always hated parties. Dresses, high-heels, make ups... those were just not her.

"Yeah, and don't tell me you're not coming, Hermione."

"Well..."

"No, there is _no _well," Ginny started. "You _will _go, and I _will _make you. It's the end, Hermione, you need to let lose of yourself. You can't just sit in the common room and read books all night!"

"Actually, we still have our last exams before graduation, and yes, I can just sit in the common room and read books all night, because if you haven't noticed, that's what I've done since first year."

Ron snickered and Ginny pulled her arms, swinging in. Hermione rolled her eyes. The younger girl was not the one to miss a party, ever. But really, she would rather sit in the common room with her precious books and a cup of hot chocolate than go to a party. It was a waste of time.

The brunette sighed and decided to just go along. "Alright, fine, I'll go. As long as you help me with the stuff we need. I'm really not good at those."

"Now, that's it!" the red-headed girl grinned. "I must go to Potions now, so I'll see you guys later!" And with that, she skipped through the hallway.

"I really hate parties." Harry just smiled at her as they continued to walk.

* * *

Draco Malfoy walked up the stairs of Malfoy Manor and past three large windows, to the floor where his father's office was. His father, Lucius Malfoy, had sent him a letter and told his son to meet him. With Dumbledore's permission, he was excused for a couple of hours since NEWTs were finished, anyway.

He reached the vast wooden doors and mumbling came from inside. He knocked and opened the door. He didn't even wait for a reply as he walked in. Draco looked inside to see his father handing some documents to his secretary. Yes, his father decided to hire a secretary. He was tired of house-elves because he thought they weren't smart enough.

Lucius gave his secretary a nod and she brushed passed me by the door. He looked at me and snapped, "Shut the door and sit."

Draco sat on the chair in front of his father's desk, whose cold grey eyes looked up to meet his own.

"I made a deal with the Greengrass Company, and that deal would make us millions and more. This project is _huge _and I just managed to persuade them to work with us."

"Great, so you don't need me, after all," Draco smirked, but quickly wiped it off of his face as Lucius' grey eyes bore onto his coldly.

"Phineas Greengrass has a daughter of your age."

"Yes, I know. Daphne Greengrass. She was one of Pansy's gang, and I don't really pay attention to her that much."

"You are to be betrothed to her," he said simply.

_Betrothed_. That word came out from Lucius' mouth smoothly, as if it was nothing. Draco never cared about who he was going to marry, but being betrothed was definitely not on his mind. His parents were betrothed, but that was different. It was 1997, and that tradition was supposed to be long gone. _'Not when you're a Pureblood...'_ he thought in his head.

"I refuse." Draco finally voiced out.

"You _refuse_?" his father repeated, narrowing his eyes.

"I'm only seventeen, father. I'm not ready to be married. Just because you want this deal real bad, doesn't mean I _have _to marry their daughter."

"I was married when I was seventeen," Lucius told his son. "And this marriage does not have anything to do with the deal. We're Purebloods, and we're following the tradition of our ancestors. Purebloods must marry Purebloods. You are of age, Draco, and Phineas and I thought it would be just right for you to marry his of age daughter. You're on the same year. You should be close with Daphne."

"You can't decide everything for me, father," Draco snapped. "I'm not ready! What happens if Daphne apparently pregnant with my child? I can't take care of a fucking baby! I can't take care of a wife!"

"Then, _how _will you manage to find a good wife? Malfoys do _not _love, Draco. You are of age! Your mother and I had you when I was eighteen!"

"That's not me, that's _you!_" Draco retorted.

"Enough!" Lucius exclaimed, banging his palm on the desk. "You _will _marry Daphne, whether you like it or not."

Draco stayed silent. They exchanged looks, trying to read each other's expressions. He just couldn't marry at this age. He was merely a teenager, for Salazar's sake! He should be enjoying his life with his friends, not with a wife.

"Give me at least two months."

"What for?"

"If I have to get married, the least I can do is to find a wife by myself."

"One week."

"Four."

"_Three_."

"Alright, three it is."

Three weeks. Three weeks to find someone to settled down with the rest of his life. Draco shuddered at the thought. He dated girls and had one-night stands, but spend his whole life with one? _'Bloody hell,'_ he cursed in his head.

"Three weeks to find a wife that will respect you and can bring the Malfoys a descendant or you will have to marry Daphne."

Stupid tradition.

* * *

**I've also uploaded this on wattpad, if you prefer reading it there. My user is lionquinns. :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to the one and only JK Rowling.**

**Author's Note: I wanna thank each and every one of you who favorite and follow this story. It makes me happy to see my email is being bombarded by you guys. Thank you! Seriously, I'm very flattered. :'D Also, if you'd like, please read my other story that you can check out in my profile. I hope you also enjoy this chapter, and don't forget to review!**

* * *

Hermione was running the full length of the hallway and knocked people out of the way. Some of them yelled at her and even swore, but she didn't care because she was late... again. _'Blame my hard-working self,' _she thought in her head.

She finally reached the classroom and she swung the big wooden door open, all of her books fell out of her hand, all over the floor. She could've sworn God was punishing her on the past few days. She quickly fell to her knees and scrabbled all her things together. Her chest rose and fell rapidly. She could feel the eyes of her classmates on her. She breathed out and stood up to find Professor Snape looking down at her.

"This is your second time for being late, Ms. Granger. In all honesty, I expect more from you." He said, his voice was firm and at the edge of annoyance. "Detention after classes are finished. Now, take your seat."

Hermione nodded and took her seat next to Harry, who was giving her a look. She knew what he was going to say, but she didn't really want to explain to him on why she was late. He already knew why, she was sure of it. And so, she merely shrugged and took out her Potions book out before starting to listen to Snape's explanation about the Hiccoughing Solution.

The bell rang and Hermione packed her bags properly this time so they wouldn't fall off. She stood up with Harry and she felt his arms tugged her wrist. "Yeah?"

"You did it again, didn't you?" Harry asked, which I replied with only a roll in my eyes. "You need to stop, Hermione. You can't keep thinking about it."

Hermione sighed and walked outside the classroom with Harry following her. "I know that, Harry. I just need some time. It's not easy, you know?"

"How much longer do you need? This is your third time being late, Hermione!"

"It's not like the end of the world," she mumbled.

"_Not the end of the world?_" Harry exclaimed. "The real Hermione Granger would panic if she has realized she's been late for three times!"

Was that really what she would do? Would she really panicked? Was she really _that _strict? She wasn't that much of a bore, was she?

"I am the real Hermione Granger, Harry, I just..." She stopped walking and looked at her best friend. "I need some time, okay? I promise I will stop."

Harry shrugged. "I'm just worried for you," he said. "What if anyone finds out? What if _Ron _finds out?"

"Potty and Granger are sitting in a tree. They are K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" They heard a voice sang and a bunch of students' laughter. Hermione turned around to see Draco Malfoy and his gang laughing at her and Harry.

"Nice joke that only your gangs who laughed at it because of how _old _that joke is, Malfoy!" she yelled, and she saw Malfoy's eyes narrowed, his lips turned into a smirk. Oh, how she hated that smirk.

"Just ignore him," Harry said and grabbed her arm, pulling her away from the devils.

* * *

Draco threw herself on the nearest couch as he entered the common room. Granger was such a Gryffin_dork_. An annoying one at that. She was the only girl in the whole school; if possible world, that would yell at him and made fun of him. She wasn't afraid of him like any other girls. She didn't swoon over him, she didn't just shut up when he made fun of her. She fought back. _'How is it possible that she fought back? She's just another Mudblood. A stupid Mudblood who don't deserve to live in this world,' _he thought in his head. He was going to make her pay for playing with him. He swore, he was going to make her pay.

"Draco," a feminine voice said. He looked up to see Daphne Greengrass walking towards him and sat next to him. "Are you all right?"

"Not now, Daph," he groaned, pushing her away.

"Well, that's not how you treat your soon-to-be wife." She smirked.

"You are _not _going to be my wife, and I'm not going to be your husband even if we're the last two people on earth."

"Oh, but you are. Our fathers have already made an agreement that I'm sure you've known about."

It was times like these that made Draco realize he could never marry her. Sometimes, no, _most of the time_, she was too much like those stupid girls who would cling on him wherever he went and would do anything just to get his money and fame. How stupid. Didn't she know that her father was one of the most well-known wizard in the whole wizarding world because of his _money_?

"As a matter of fact, I have three weeks to find a girl that I actually _like _to spend the rest of my life with, so there is a little possibility that we will spend the rest of our fucking lives together," Draco snapped at Daphne.

"Please," she drawled. "You don't _like _anyone, Draco. You only like yourself, you only care about yourself, so there is a _big _possibility that you will be my husband."_  
_

"You don't know anything about me, Daphne, so I suggest you run your clingy ass somewhere else because I'd like to be alone and have some peace."

Something shifted in her expression, but before he could tell whether he had hurt her feelings or not, she had stepped on his feet and walked passed him, muttering darkly under her breath, "One way or another, you _will _be my husband."

"Obsessed much?"

* * *

Hermione walked outside the common room, only to see Ginny staring at her with her big light brown eyes in front of the door. She jumped back and shut her eyes to get a grip of herself. "You could've killed me, Gin," she muttered.

"Where are you going?"

"The library."

"But it's past curfew, and you never went out after curfew," she said.

"I just need a good book for my Charms assignment, all right?"

"That's no excuse. You can find your book tomorrow, can't you?" Ginny asked, furrowing her eyebrows. "You know, you've been acting so odd lately. I heard Lavender and Parvati gossiping about you being late for three times in a week, and that you've been daydreaming in-"

Hermione let out a frustrated sigh. "I'm not daydreaming and I don't daydream," she cut her off.

"Well, you seems to be now. You're also going to break a rule; something you've never did before. Are you sure you're okay, Hermione?"

Maybe Ginny was right. Maybe she hadn't been acting like herself lately. "Yes, I'm fine. Will you please excuse me now? Just go back to sleep, Gin, I won't be long." She said and quickly walked away from her. She understood Ginny's concern for her, but she was acting too much like her mother.

She wormed her way through the shelves of books as she entered the library, trying to find the perfect book for her Charms assignment, but her mind was still thinking about what Ginny said- or more likely, what _everyone _had been saying. There was nothing wrong with her. She was still the same Hermione Granger, just with a little twist. She was showing up late to classes because she had a rough night studying. And about her breaking the rules was no surprise when it had something to do with books, wasn't it?

Hermione huffed and continued on looking for the right book. Fifteen minutes passed, twenty minutes passed, thirty minutes passed... she still couldn't find one. She was starting to think that maybe the reason she came here wasn't for books. But there was only one place to find out. She bit her lower lip before walking towards the Restricted Section.

She stood in front of the locked door and looked around to make sure no one was around before quietly recited a simple incantation and the door snapped open. She grabbed a book from the shelf next to her and placed it between the doors. She smiled to herself as she walked in. She started to worm her way through the shelves of books again. Not long after, she saw a book on the very top of a shelf that caught her eyes.

She stood up on her toes to grab the books.

"So, the Goody Two Shoes Granger is breaking the rules, huh?" A voice teased, causing her to jump and fell to her feet, landing on her butt.

She groaned and looked up to see Draco Malfoy standing before her, flashing the famous Malfoy smirk. _'Not him again._'"What are you doing here, and how did you get in here?"

"I saw you entered the Restricted Section and I thought it'd be amusing if I make a fun of you. You left the door open, anyways," he replied.

Hermione quickly stood up from the floor and rushed past Malfoy towards the door. She stopped in her tracks as she saw the doors were closed and the lights were out. "Well, isn't that just fucking great, Malfoy!"

"Ooh, so the Goody Two Shoes is using harsh words now?" he smirked.

"Shut up. Just shut up, okay? I've had enough already! You don't know anything about me, alright? You don't even know if I would fucking swear or not, so just shut up, Malfoy. It doesn't even matter if I swear or not, the only thing we have to focus on right now is to fix the problem that is happening to us now, okay?" she said frustratingly. "Why did you take the book? The library has been closed now and Madam Pince has locked up the Restricted Section... with us in it!"

How dare he even insult her without knowing the _real _her besides the fact that she was a muggle-born and happened to love books.

"Are you on your time of the month or something, Granger? Because you could really use some calm shit on yourself," Malfoy said, making her cheeks red from anger and embarrassment. "I thought you were a genius. Just say another incantation."

"That's the problem, you stupid prick. We can't open it from the inside. We're trapped in here until someone unlocked the door, and that's all thanks to _you_." Hermione huffed. "Oh, God, I can't wait until Professor McGonagall finds out that her top students were out after curfew. She will be absolutely delighted." She finished and walked away from him.

"What were you doing here, anyway?" Malfoy asked.

"None of your concern," she replied and took one of the books on the shelf. She opened the book and reached her wand from her pocket, whispering "_Lumos" _before reading it.

Draco leaned against the shelf and stared at her. He hated to admit it, but it was his fault that they were trapped inside. As he stared at the girl, he noticed she wasn't really that bad looking. She had changed over the years, and she had actually turned into a fairly attractive young woman. She wasn't beautiful, but she was pretty; he even thought she looked _far _better than Daphne. Yes, she had beauty in her. One that didn't need make-up or fancy clothing.

"Wait a minute," Hermione said, snapping her book closed. "I think I remember Ernie McMillan telling me about a secret door here somewhere."

Draco quickly shook his thoughts out of his head. _'Did I just _stare _at Mudblood Granger?' _"How do we suppose to find it?"

"I don't know, feel around?" she said, putting the book back on the shelf. "Come on, I don't want to be here any longer."

He watched her walked past him and started to glide her small fingers in the old wood and the walls, trying to feel something. "Granger, what exactly are you doing?"

"Didn't you hear me earlier? We're looking for the secret door, and in case you don't know, a secret door means a door that cannot be seen," Hermione told him in her bossy, know-it-all voice.

"Gee, Granger, remind me to buy you a calming potion." Draco snapped, starting to get annoyed with her attitude.

"Just find the bloody damn door, Malfoy." She said, still gliding her small fingers in the old wood and the walls.

"And who do you think you are, telling me what to do?"

"Do you want to- Ouch!" she exclaimed. "Stupid wood. I just cut my index finger."

"Do I look like I care?"

Hermione huffed.

"You were rude to me and then you cut your finger. I believe it's called karma, Granger." Draco smirked. She looked at him and glared. He rolled his eyes and walked up to her, taking her hand in his. He stared at her before he brought her cut finger to his mouth. He licked off the blood off of her finger and he could feel her breathing heavily. Her face was so priceless. If only he had that muggle thing that Colin Creevey always brought along.

Draco reached his wand from his robes and muttered a simple spell to her finger. The cut healed itself in an instant. He put his wand back to his robes and let her hand limp on her side. "There you go," he said.

Hermione stood there in silence, staring at him and completely speechless. Priceless, indeed.

"A simple thank you would suffice."

"Thank you!" she said a little bit too quickly. "Uh... thanks. And um, I think we should probably start looking again, shall we? Let's just split up. That way we'll find it faster." She finished and walked away quickly.

It was getting darker outside. Draco looked at his wrist-watch to see it was midnight already. He sighed and started looking for the secret door again. It was only five minutes later when he saw a deep crimson tapestry on the wall.

_'This could be it.' _He thought to himself. He turned around and looked for Granger. As he walked past five bookshelves, he saw her sitting against a shelf and was sleeping soundly. He slowly walked up to her and sat in front of her. He stared at her, again.

No, she wasn't ugly. He would never admit it outside, but she was really pretty. _Granger_... she was so unpredictable. She was nice as a rabbit in one moment, and then the next, she could make people's blood boiled. He smiled at the thought. He could never understand how her friends stand her. But perhaps, she wasn't that insufferable. _Hermione... _the word sounded wrong on his tongue, but for some reason, it kind of felt _right_. _Her-My-Oh-Knee_.

"Huh? Did you find something?" Draco looked at her, startled. Oh, so he said it out loud.

"Uh, yeah... I actually found something."

She immediately opened her eyes. "Really?"

"Yeah, come on." Draco stood up from the ground and held out his hand for Hermione to take. Surprisingly, she took his hand without hesitant. _'Maybe it's because she's too excited that I've found the door... wait, why am I even holding out my hand for her?' _he argued in his head as they walked towards the place where he found the deep crimson tapestry. "So? Do you think this could be it?"

Hermione opened the old door opened and looked inside. "Yes, you found it!"

"Well... you go first." She looked up at him and raised her eyebrows. "What? If something's in there, it's better if you're attacked first."

Hermione merely rolled her eyes made her way outside with Draco following behind her. Not long after, they reached the end. She opened the door and they found themselves in a dark corridor. "We made it," she breathed out, smiling.

"You know, Granger, being trapped with you didn't really make me want to kill myself." Draco told her.

Hermione turned around and looked at him. "Um, yeah... I thought the same," she said. "And uh, I guess we should be getting back before someone sees us."

"Yeah, you're right. See you in classes, Granger." And with that, he walked into the darkness of the corridor.


End file.
